Bus or Train?

[superdiz]

Has anyone ever used Greyhound or Amtrak to get to Florida? Which station did you come into, Kissimmee or Orlando? What's faster? How did you get onto Disney property? Thanks!!

Kelly

 

[MLK-RI]

Hi Kelly,
We've taken Amtrak to Disney twice. Once overnight from NY Penn Station to Orlando station and took Tiffany Towncar to WDW. The trip down was flawless, and Tiffany was right there no problems. The trip back our train was delayed a bit more than an hour so we simply waited at Orlando station as Tiffany had already picked us up and delivered us all there. Problem is that the train became more delayed overnight and we missed our connection in NY which wasn't fun.
Our other experience was via the Amtrak Auto train which lets you off in Sanford FL, you have your own car to drive you the 1/2 hour more to WDW.
We enjoy the trains for the "adventure" of it. We found that the service on the AutoTrain (taken 2x but only once going to Disney) was far superior to the service on the regular overnight train, even though we had a sleeping car accomodation. The Auto Train was simply a step up from that.
The only problem for us is that traveling from RI it adds a full day on each end of the trip.
Hope you enjoy whatever you choose!
-Mary Lou

 

[dtsaos]

Hi, this will be our third time taking amtrak to disney. The first time we picked it up in Boston and then had to switch to another train in NY. We took it coach to NY and then we got a sleeper room for the remainder of the trip. The sleepers are quite nice, but very expensive but I was 7 months pregnant at the time and didn't think I could survive the whole trip in coach. ( I could barely stand the sleeper by the time we arrived!)

The second time we took Amtrak's autotrain which you have to pick up in VA, so we had to drive to VA to pick it up. We went coach on the way down and it wasn't too bad because it was very empty. On the way back it was packed so we were lucky enough to get a sleeper room. Lucky because it was me, DH, DS 3.5 and DD 20months and they put us in a sleeper that was suppossed to only be for 2 adults so it wasn't too expensive-but it was a tight fit! Overall a good experience, but again quite expensive when you factor in the cost to bring your vehicle.

This time we will be picking the train up in Newark NJ because my mom lives about a 1/2 hour from there and we'll sleep at her house the night before and this train goes straight to Kissimmee-no switching! We are going to rough it and take coach (gulp) both ways. Understand that lots of people have no problem doing coach, but may not have young children which if you have any you know makes pretty much everything more difficult! And we have 3 this time! (new baby girl)

and FYI, you couldn't PAY me enough money to take a bus all the way from NE to FL. Amtak has lounge areas and dining cars so you can walk around. We are considering renting a mini van and the rental co will p/u at the station, but we've taken a taxi before and it was I think about $50.00 1 way.

Good luck deciding!

 

[Aisling]

My mom, who will not get on a plane for a million dollars, took Greyhound from NYC to Orlando to meet us. It took just over 24 hours, and she arrived perfectly on time to get into the Cartier Towncar that was waiting for her, get to MCO to meet our flight, and we all jumped into the Southern Elegance limo to AKL. It was flawless.

Depending on your tolerance of being on a bus for any extended period of time, it's a dependable and often fairly inexpensive way to get to WDW. On the trip home, the limo picked us up from the Contemporary, dropped her off at the bus station in Orlando, and then dropped the rest of us off at MCO. The timing was just right.

Good luck with your decision!